Welcome to the Jubilant J-Rod Show
Showtime is coming to Seattle. I say that not because I have obsessed over Winning Time recently, but because Julio Rodriguez has Magic Johnson magnetism and potential. The jubilant J-Rod show will be one that nobody will want to miss.
Not only is Rodriguez a fearsome hitter (see his first AB from this spring) and a solid fielder with speed, he brings contagious energy in the same way Magic did for the Showtime Lakers. All one has to do is watch his recent inside-the-park home run and his reaction after sliding into home.
It’s the very energy and youthful joy for the game the Mariners have been lacking since another rookie phenom joined the team in 2001. Which is also the last year the Mariners tasted the playoffs. It has been over 20 years of baseball pain ever since for M’s fans.
Julio Rodriguez will change that. As he said to Mariners Manager Scott Servais after being told he made the opening day roster:
“It’s on.”
Not since another Rodriguez who shall not be named has a Mariners prospect arrived with so much excitement and expectation. Felix Hernandez was special, but we only enjoyed the King’s Court every fifth day.
As a position player who will likely start in centerfield, Julio Rodriguez will have the opportunity to make an impact everyday.
Although we have to be realistic. Rodriguez will inevitably struggle at times. Just ask another young Mariners phenom, Jarred Kelenic.
I thought the Mariners might actually use the Kelenic experience from this past year to justify starting Rodriguez in the minors. It is a lot to ask of a 21-year-old, after all, to anchor a major league outfield and perform at a high level everyday.
We also cannot ignore the elephant in the room for prospects like Rodriguez – service time. By bringing him up now, the Mariners forgo another year of club control over Rodriguez. All it takes is 15 days in the minors to delay free agency eligibility another year. The Mariners have shown they’re not hesitant to play service time games with the likes of Jarred Kelenic and Logan Gilbert.
But the Mariners simply could not justify this with Rodriguez. He absolutely tore the cover off the ball this spring. I’m just 12 games, he posted a .419/.471/.839 slash line, complete with three homers, four doubles, eight RBI, three walks, and three stolen bases. He only struck out nine times.
Not since Ken Griffey Jr. has a Mariners prospect compelled the club to promote him so ahead of schedule. Relegating Rodriguez to the minors after that spring performance would have sent the team a message – we don’t care about winning.
One of the best ways to determine if a prospect is ready is to listen to what veteran players have to say. As Manager Scott Servais said:
“I’ve always said you can’t fool the players, you can’t (expletive) the players. They know. And just hearing the comments over the last 10 days is how you know It’s from some of our guys who have been around a little bit. It’s ‘This kid is for real, isn’t he?’ or ‘Hey this kid ain’t bad.’ That’s all they need to say. That’s telling me right away they recognize this guy can help them and he can us I don’t want to hype a player too much, but there’s something about Julio that excites everybody. It’s not just the fans. It’s not just the media. It’s the players in the clubhouse. That’s ultimately who you have to earn the respect from, and I think he’s done that.”
Warm up your popcorn, Seattle and baseball fans everywhere. Hell, anyone who enjoys watching greatness should be excited. Yes, I may be out over my skis in anointing the second coming of “The Kid”, but as Seattle Times sports writer Larry Stone said, Julio Rodriguez has the “it” factor.
The “it” factor is not something you can measure with fancy sabermetrics. It’s not quantifiable. When you’ve watched baseball and other sports for over 20 years (religiously) like I have, you know it when you see it.
And Julio Rodriguez has it. The swagger. The Magic Johnson charisma. And the prodigious talent and work ethic to back it up.
It’s showtime.
1 Comment
Bold Predictions for the 2022 MLB Season - PolisPandit · April 8, 2022 at 8:45 am
[…] Ray. Although Ray’s career numbers are much worse, and many of the M’s young stars, including jubilant J-Rod, are unproven and inconsistent. Jarred Kelenic in particular needs to show that he learned from […]
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